


No Need To Make A Meal Of It

by FrozenSnares



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Awkward Date, F/M, First Dates, Food, Stood Up, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-02
Updated: 2016-10-02
Packaged: 2018-08-19 00:49:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8182550
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FrozenSnares/pseuds/FrozenSnares
Summary: Shireen doesn’t date often, mostly because she’s rarely asked out. She always puts her best foot forward when it does, though often to poor results. When she gets stood up, she doesn’t expect anything to make it better, but she gets surprised for the rest of the night.Written for Day 7 of Rickeen Shipweek—Prompt: Free Prompt





	

**Author's Note:**

> [Picset](http://frozensnares.tumblr.com/post/151217542031/no-need-to-make-a-meal-of-it-shireen-doesnt)

Tapping her foot and shaking her legs, Shireen fiddled with her hands, trying to keep still. She had already been scolded for moving far too much considering that she was a working adult woman, and she would much rather not be in this situation at all. However, once she let slip to her cousin that she had a date, Myrcella insisted on coming over and helping her prepare for her date. Clicking her tongue gently, Myrcella leaned over, giving Shireen a rather spectacular view of her cleavage. She bit her lip, and Shireen stifled a groan with a small roll of her eyes.

“Stop that,” Myrcella said sharply. She spun the brush around in her hand to lightly swiped at Shireen’s cheek. “Come _on_. It’s basically your first date, and you need to look nice. Now, look down.”

“It is _not_ my first date,” Shireen said back, looking down so Myrcella could sweep mascara onto her eyes. She wasn’t particularly fond of the idea of dating, even less so when other people had to get themselves involved one way or another. Still, she was plenty old enough for people to make a fuss, and Myrcella did not have to drive two hours just to do Shireen’s makeup when they both knew Myrcella had work tomorrow morning.

Myrcella hummed happily as she painted Shireen’s lips a fairly vibrant shade of red. She led Shireen through the techniques to blot off the lipstick and keep it off her teeth, even if Shireen felt silly for sticking her finger in her mouth. “Oh, he is going to love you,” Myrcella said, leaning back to admire her work. “Maybe you’ll marry him!”

Shireen snorted. “Get stood up more likely.”

“Honey, he asked _you_ ,” Myrcella reminded her. She waggled her finger before sweeping Shireen’s hair away from her shoulders. “You’re in a nice dress, your makeup is perfect, and you are definitely getting laid tonight.”

“Cell!”

“What?” Myrcella said, shrugging slightly. She closed the cap of the mascara and zipped it back up in her bag. “You’re hot, and he’d be an idiot not to make a move.”

She spun Shireen’s chair around, letting her see herself in the mirror. Shireen almost recoiled from such a foreign sight. While the mass of discolored flesh wasn’t made completely invisible, it was blended into her skin in a way that made the sight much less jarring. Myrcella had done something to bring out her eyes, and Shireen had a fleeting feeling of being a starlet with her red lips.

“So?” Myrcella asked. She moved around to put a necklace onto Shireen.

Shireen leveled a look at her cousin. “I look human for once,” she said, earning a loud scoff from her cousin. “Maybe he won’t mind staring at me for an hour.”

“Girl, if you aren’t the one that breaks his heart, I’ll break _him_ ,” Myrcella assured Shireen.

Sighing, Shireen picked at the skirt of her dress. “I’ve known him forever,” Shireen reminded him. “Isn’t it weird to date someone who’s basically your brother?”

Myrcella shook her head, giving Shireen a supportive hug. “Don’t worry about that,” she said. “Just know that you are going to knock the socks off of Devan Seaworth.”

\--

True to Shireen’s nature, she arrived at the restaurant for her date a full ten minutes early. Only feeling a little bit awkward about arriving alone and not seeing Devan around, Shireen steeled herself to make the situation as bearable as possible. She went straight up to the host, determined to get seated and find Devan soon. However, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had done something wrong, and she felt utterly lost and completely ridden with nerves. The hostess smiled politely at her, asking, “Table for two?”

“I’m meeting someone,” Shireen said, leaning forward to glance at the list of reservations. She smiled to herself, though, knowing that she at least looked fit to be on a date. “Devan Seaworth?”

“Of course,” the host said, putting down his pen. He grabbed a set of menus and stepped away from the podium. “Right this way.”

With a small bounce in her step, Shireen followed after the host. If Devan had arrived even earlier _and_ made a reservation, maybe she wasn’t too far off from showing up in her best clothes. A spark of hope ignited in her chest, and Shireen was only a little shocked to see the table set for two empty. The host went straight to the table, setting down the two menus.

“He should only be a moment,” the host said before walking away. “Your server will be with you shortly.”

Swallowing down the feeling of awkwardness, Shireen bit her lip and took a seat at the booth. She made sure to sit with her right side out, hoping to save Devan the embarrassment of being seen in public with her ruined side on display. Shireen sighed, trying to settle her nerves before Devan arrived. She smoothed her hair back into place, sliding her fingers around the edge of the menu.

She wasn’t supposed to open it. Myrcella had made that very clear. No matter what happened, she needed to wait for Devan to open his first. She knew there was some explanation for _why_ she had a bizarre list of rules to follow, but Shireen couldn’t remember any of it with how much her brain was buzzing. Tapping her feet some, Shireen picked at the corner of her menu, glancing around for any sign of Devan. 

After a minute, a waitress arrived, smiling beautifully. “Can I get you anything to drink?” she asked. “Something to start you off for the night?”

“I’m waiting for someone, actually,” Shireen said, hoping that she didn’t sound as obviously nervous as she felt. 

“Of course,” the waitress said. “My name’s Jeyne, if you need anything.”

Shireen smiled at her as she went, counting all the groups of people coming in. A few families were out tonight, some groups that looked to be celebrating birthdays, a few dates… Shireen smiled at the thought, wondering how and when her own date would start. Devan wouldn’t be long, and then things would be better.

It was five minutes later that Shireen checked her phone. Myrcella had told her not to. She had adamantly insisted that Shireen wasn’t to look at her phone no matter what. _Even if he’s late_ , Myrcella told her. _The instant you check your phone, he’ll show up and think you’re just bored._

By now, Shireen was willing to resort to witchcraft to summon her date, especially since her waitress had already placed a glass of water on the table _just in case she wanted it_. Sipping at the drink, Shireen scrolled through her phone, hoping for any indication that Devan was simply running twenty minutes late. When Jeyne passed with another table’s order, Shireen looked away quickly, hoping that this didn’t look as pathetic as she thought it must. However, a large group of rather boisterous boys walked in, and Shireen excitedly looked up, hoping that Devan would be trailing after them.

Her heart sank. The group was composed of some of Devan’s friends, and he was nowhere in sight. Shireen shrank down in her seat, hoping that she wouldn’t be recognized. However, they were sitting in perfect view of her sitting all alone, and undoubtedly some of them would know that Devan was the one who asked her out. As subtly as she could, Shireen moved to the other side of the booth. Her humiliation was going to quickly shut her down completely if she didn’t do something to take charge of the situation. She grabbed her menu, thinking that she at least deserved to treat herself after this disaster.

A full thirty minutes had now passed, her date was nowhere to be seen, and the only way to salvage the situation was to pretend she was just here to enjoy a meal alone. The major issue here was that Shireen was dressed just a little too nicely to play that off, and she had no idea was people did when they took themselves out to eat. In attempt to busy herself and make this dinner a proper meal, Shireen started reading through the menu, looking for something to eat. She wanted to hail her waitress as soon as possible just to get something in front of her. After all, she wasn’t quite prepared to pretend this was her plan all along. She hadn’t even brought a book.

The _clink_ of a dish got her attention, and Shireen looked up to see an appetizer in front of her. She confusedly looked up at her waitress, hoping that the woman hadn’t served her out of pity. “Oh, no,” Shireen said quickly. “You really don’t have to—”

“From an anonymous admirer,” Jeyne said pointedly, nudging the mozzarella sticks closer to Shireen with a slightly amused smile on her face. “Enjoy.”

Shireen stared down at the plate before looking around. If it wasn’t just an act of pity from her waitress, then it had to be someone in the restaurant feeling sorry for her, and Shireen couldn’t see any potential suspects. No one was eyeing her for a reaction to the appetizer, or even looked remotely interested in the fact that she was eating alone. There were glances, sure, but they were all from people who looked relieved that it hadn’t happened to them. Shireen found herself making excuses.

Maybe Devan was hiding somewhere and sending her food, going for a non-traditional date? Maybe she knew one of Devan’s friends and they felt bad that she was sitting alone? Maybe her waitress was lying to her and just fed her out of pity. Shireen looked around for Jeyne, finding her utterly consumed in helping another table—a large family from the looks of it. She was just checking on their meal, though, definitely not plotting to give Shireen more food. One of the boys at the table—sitting next to a boy in a wheelchair—called her over, handing her a small slip of paper. Shireen sighed with a faint smile on her face. Even her waitress could get a number while working, and Shireen couldn’t even get her date to show up.

Shireen went back to scanning the restaurant. Everyone else looked to be on their own date or with family, and Shireen ruled them out quickly. Still, the food in front of her looked far too good to resist, especially when she was feeling sorry for herself and she was definitely hungry from her wait.

Pulling at a mozzarella stick, Shireen ripped it in half, pulling the cheese as far as it would stretch. She no longer had anyone to impress, so she didn’t bother with looking proper as she shoved the cheese into her mouth and chewed slowly before swallowing. A part of her was tempted to call Myrcella, to let her know that all her work was for naught, and that despite both of their best efforts, Shireen had been stood up.

The call would only worry her cousin, though, and Shireen knew that Myrcella was likely still driving home. A text message would be better, but Shireen didn’t want to have Myrcella turning around and coming just to be her date. After all, Myrcella had her husband to go back to and work in the morning.

Eating slowly, Shireen started to seriously look through the menu for something to eat. She had been to this restaurant before, and she knew she liked their ravioli. However, without someone sitting across from her, Shireen felt much more willing to take chances. Plus, she didn’t have to worry about getting dirty or looking silly. She would never consider eating something with her hands on a date for fear of getting messy, but alone… Eyeing the selection of hamburgers, Shireen picked one to eat as she finished her mozzarella sticks.

Draining her water, Shireen looked around for Jeyne, hoping to finish her meal on a positive note. Shireen glanced back to her phone, thinking that she could maybe tap into the internet and finish some work while she ordered a proper meal for herself. Just as she was digging for her phone, Jeyne reappeared, setting the exact same burger Shireen was just eyeing right in front of her.

“Compliments of your admirer,” Jeyne said, looking far too pleased with herself.

Shireen stared dumbly at her meal, completely confused by the situation. She looked up to Jeyne who was now pouring her more water. She looked back to the burger. “No,” she said. “Seriously, I can’t just… who would do this?”

Jeyne shrugged, trying to keep her smile neutral and failing. “Just… someone.”

“It’s not Devan, right?” Shireen asked. “The guy who made the reservation? He’s not hiding somewhere is he?”

“I don’t know who you’re talking about, but I was told not to give away any details,” Jeyne said smoothly, stepping back. “Is there anything else I can get for you?”

“The check,” Shireen said, her voice much stronger than she intended. She pulled out her credit card, determined to at least pay for her meal before whoever was doing this managed to do it first.

Jeyne grinned at her. “It’s already been taken care of,” she said. 

“Bullshit,” Shireen called out, much louder than she expected. A good majority of the restaurant turned to face her. While Shireen had been hoping to catch someone staring as an indicator of who was doing this, but she didn’t want it to be _everyone_.

Jeyne giggled, giving Shireen a slightly chastising look. She started away, but not before looking over her shoulder and saying, “Make sure you save room for dessert.”

Shireen stopped her mouth from dropping open. Instead, she frowned down at the burger. A little bit angrily and mostly confused, Shireen grabbed at her credit card, sliding it back in her wallet. She glanced around, seeing that more than a few people were still shooting her odd looks. The small outburst had almost ruined her cover here, and Shireen couldn’t even remember if anyone was shooting her glances before.

None of the boys from the loud table were an option, particularly as they were all laughing loudly and seemed to be blatantly joking at her expense. The other stares were mostly from women on their own dates, undoubtedly having had noticed that she had been stood up. Turning away from the onlookers, Shireen faced her burger again. It wasn’t going to taste any better cold, and it had apparently already been paid for. Ignoring the confusion that was growing stronger in her stomach, Shireen decided that she would at least enjoy the meal.

She picked up the burger, glancing around quickly before digging in. No one was even looking at her anymore, and no one had looked like they would be willing to pay for an entire three course meal for a stranger solely out of pity. Sinking her teeth into the burger, Shireen let out a sigh as she let her stomach fill up. She licked her fingers clean after every bite, making sure that she also had some French fries to accompany the meal. When she was nearly finished, she dug into her purse, tearing out a scrap of paper from her notebook. 

Grabbing a pen, Shireen wrote out her phone number before she could stop herself. Then, she quickly scribbled out a short note that read _Calling’s easier than paying for a meal. If you’d actually want to._

Shireen grimaced at the paper. It wasn’t nearly as clear as she thought, but she didn’t want her self-doubt to clog up the sentiment. Still, if the interest was genuine, Shireen would much rather have her mysterious benefactor just give her a call instead of doing whatever this was supposed to be. Tapping her fingers over the note, Shireen nearly crumpled it up when a slice of triple chocolate cake was set in front of her.

“And dessert for the lady,” Jeyne said. She gave Shireen a huge grin as she set down a fork. “Everything’s all set and paid for, by someone who wishes to remain anonymous. So no asking.”

Shireen nearly rubbed at her eye before she remembered that she was wearing makeup. Instead, she folded up the note before she could crush it in a fist. “Just… give them this,” she said, sitting up quickly and straightening out her back. “Please.”

Jeyne snatched the paper away from Shireen’s hand, but thankfully the woman paid it no mind as she tucked it into her apron. Shireen watched her go, but the woman was obviously waiting until Shireen was preoccupied before making the delivery. Sighing, Shireen started on her cake, taking care to eat slowly and trying to watch for anyone’s reaction. Surely, if this was some sort of cheap trick, she’d find out soon enough. The small, optimistic part of herself just hoped that it wouldn’t come to nothing, and that she wouldn’t have to be put in this situation again. 

After all, even if she did meet whoever had done this face to face, the odds were not in her favor of having any sort of lasting date. Shireen immediately crushed her hopes, knowing that they would be far less than pleased at seeing her face. The chances were small that she would be asked out again, and she was much more likely to just get stood up again. Shireen finished up her cake, taking Jeyne at her word and leaving once she was finished. She intentionally didn’t pass by the table of loud boys, saving herself from further humiliation, and walked a longer path to the exit.

No one paid her anything more than a glance as she went, and Shireen was starting to seriously hate the fact that whoever had put her through this confusion had such a good poker face. She made it back to her apartment with much more confusion and a small bit of frustration at everything that had happened.

To remove herself as far from the event as possible, Shireen quickly stripped off her dress and went to scrub the makeup off her face. It was one of the major problems Shireen had with wearing makeup. The process of removal and application took far too much time, especially given the disease that had left a selection of her face in a rough landscape. Finally going about completely bare, Shireen scurried about to find her pajamas, thinking that she might be better off retiring early. She sorted through a nightdress, going for comfort above all else, when her phone started ringing.

Automatically, Shireen assumed it was Myrcella, seeing as she was rarely contacted this late at night. But Myrcella knew nothing of what happened this evening, and Shireen wasn’t in any rush to let her know sooner than necessary. A tiny part of her thought it might be Devan, hopefully with an apology ready and some profuse begging for her to give him another chance. Shireen was fully prepared to terminate that relationship, whenever the opportunity presented itself. However, the number on the screen was unknown, and Shireen hoped that someone wasn’t playing a trick on her.

Feeling extremely uncomfortable answering without clothes on, Shireen shoved on her nightdress before answering the call with the most neutral _“Hello?”_ she could manage.

“How was the meal?” came the response. Shireen didn’t recognize the voice, but it was definitely male. Her voice caught, and she couldn’t even think of a response before he kept talking. “I do hope you liked it. It was all my favorite things at the restaurant.”

Finally, Shireen got her voice back. “Wait, _you’re_ the one that ordered and paid for my meal?”

“Absolutely,” he said. “Couldn’t very well just go over. Sister’s birthday and all, but I hope it was to your liking.”

“It was, yeah,” Shireen said, sitting down on her bed. “I mean, it definitely made getting stood up better.”

A small hum came from the line. “Have you properly dumped them yet?” he asked. “Assuming you had a status of sorts?”

Shireen bit her lip, uncertain how much she should divulge to this complete stranger who now had her number. While she was tempted to remain reclusive, Shireen decided that if this wasn’t going to amount to anything if she met him, it certainly wouldn’t harm anything to disclose the information now.

“No status to speak of,” Shireen found herself saying, leaning back onto her pillows. “So no one to properly dump.”

“Then, would it be out of line to ask you out myself?” he responded, a grin clearly forming his words.

Shireen twisted her mouth, trying to sort out the information for herself first. After all, she wasn’t very well going to put herself in a situation where she’d be stood up again. “Well, I generally like to have seen the people I date,” she said. “And know their name before things start happening.”

“Rickon Stark,” he said quickly, obviously realizing his error. “How about a coffee tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow?” Shireen asked. “You don’t even know my name.”

He let out a chuckle. “How about you tell me tomorrow?” he asked. “I’ll be at the café on Third. Ten a.m.”

“How will I know it’s you?” she asked back, suddenly much more tempted to go.

“I’ll have already bought you a drink,” he replied. “So I’ll be the loser sitting around with two drinks.”

Shireen giggled. Leaning back farther, she said. “Well, I certainly can’t let you stay that way, so I suppose I’ll see you tomorrow.”


End file.
